Preparation of Lead-Free X-Ray Shielding Materials Based on Natural Rubber/Barium Sulfate Composites

This work prepared the lead-free X-ray shielding materials based on natural rubber (NR) mixed with BaSO4 particles at different BaSO4 contents (0–100 phr) and different material thicknesses (0.5-2.5 cm). The X-ray shielding properties of NR/BaSO4 composites were tested using a 100-kV X-ray generator. The results suggested that the increases in the BaSO4 contents improved the x-ray shielding properties of the NR/BaSO4 composites, such as linear attenuation coefficient ( ), mass attenuation coefficient ( ), and half-value layer (HVL). The highest X-ray attenuation was 94 % in 100 phr BaSO4. In terms of mechanical properties, it was found that the density and hardness (Shore A) increased with increasing BaSO4 contents. In contrast, the increases in BaSO4 resulted in decreased tensile strength, elongation at break and tear strength. In summary, the overall properties suggest that these NR/ BaSO4 composites could be developed as an effective X-ray shielding material instead of lead.